The Secrets Of Her Past
by Fatal Mars
Summary: She doesn't know much about her true past, but knows her future depends on how her next fight will go. On her journey to become a better fighter she meets some new and familar faces on the way. Inner Senshi/Street Fighter 3rd Strike Crossover.
1. To America

The sun glared down harshly on the russet haired girl as she ran. Tanned skin glistened with sweat and tight muscles flexed from strain. Dark emerald eyes were focuses on the hare that ran slightly ahead of her, but out of reach. Long peach legs carried her over fallen logs and uplifted roots with ease as she navigated her way through the maze like forest that she had spent her childhood navigating. An oak bow staff swayed from side to side on her back as she dodged trees and vines in her attempt to grasp the bushy white tail that tempted her. Only the sounds of her harsh breathing, rushing water and the life within the forest could be heard around her. The smell of the earth and the slight chill of the wind filled her senses, and helped her focus on the movements of the hare.

"Ha!" She cried as she lunged at the hare. Long legs extended and the tight amber sarong that she wore fluttered about as she flew through the air. For a few seconds she was airborne. She could hear the wind in her ears, but that was all and for a moment she experienced utter loneliness. Before she could dwell on the loneliness she landed chest first into the rich soil of the forest. She quickly whipped out her staff from its holder and slammed it down extending her left leg , while using the right to hold her body up and steady. A loud crack was heard as the staff reached its target. The hare shuddered and stumbled forward two steps before falling over to its side.

Makoto moved forward slowly and crawled toward the hare and poked its backside with her index finger. The hare shook from her prodding, but it did not take anymore steps. Full rose lips curved into an impish grin and a yell of victory soon followed.

"Yes!" She exclaimed jumping to her feet as she proceeded to do a victory dance. With her hands raised above her head she shimmied her shapely hips back and forth and twirled her staff in the air. Her sandal clad feet shuffled about in a dance that only a choice group knew.

A breeze blew from behind her causing her to lose her footing as well as the grasp on her staff as it jerked down toward her head. "Ouch." She groaned rubbing her tender forehead. She could fault the hare for the bump that she would receive, but that would only cause ridicule amongst the other girls in her class. 'Oh well', she thought picking up the hare by its hind legs . She pulled the twine out of her hair that was holding up her thick ponytail and the freed locks fell in loose waves down her back. The twine was of horrible quality, but it would have to do. In her haste to catch the hare she had forgotten to get a rope and a hunting knife. Knowing that the other girls in her class wanted to please Haruka by being the first. Makoto made haste as she backtracked toward the village; of course she would probably get a stern talking to by running head first into a challenge. With a disappointed sigh she tied the hare to her staff and headed back toward her village.

In a tall oak above Makoto the wind continued to rustle the leaves about, but some of the older tree branches stood strong against the force. The peculiar thing was that the breeze had long since settled and was not evident in any other parts of the forest. As the breeze grew in force loose moss colored hair fluttered about harshly on a tanned face of a woman with crimson eyes. The woman directly across from her on an adjacent branch seemed to be the cause of the mysterious wind.

One woman had a worried frown on her heart shaped face, while the other possesed a rather bored pout on hers.

"She still rushes head first into things."The darker woman said in a tone that gave away a strong tenderness for the girl. The pale woman picked up on the sentiment and sucked her teeth in disapproval. "That could be the means to her un-doing."

Crimson eyes widened with worry as her brow furrowed in frustration. She turned her head to her companion, "Then promise me you'll watch over her." Her voice was pleading, which surprised her black eyed companion. In the many years that they had know each other she had never heard her plead. She tilted her head to the side and her lips turned upwards slightly. She plucked a single card from mid-air and flipped it over. The crimson eyed women tried to view the card, but the dark eyed woman tossed it into the air where it dispersed into dark purple shimmery dust dispersing immediately in the wind.

"For an old friend... I'll do it."

* * *

Ken looked at his Rolex for the seventh time in annoyance. All of the passengers had come and gone from the baggage pick up, but here he was waiting along with a few hired hands for a girl he had never met. He had called and confirmed that she had gotten on the flight and there were no layovers so she could not have gotten lost. 'The things I do for my mother', he thought sorely as he looked at the crumpled picture he pulled from his pocket.

The photo was a standard school year book picture of a young Japanese girl. His mom said she was fourteen, but she looked more like a seventeen year old with the provocative smile she had on her face. Her dark blue eyes and platinum blond hair that contrasted with small lips and oval shaped eyes pleasantly. She was a half breed like him and according to his mother, she was also his cousin and an only child.

He was supposed to pick her up and show her around Los Angeles for a while, before taking her to a photo shoot in Hollywood. In Japan and London she was supposedly a big star, but now she wanted to expand her name to America as well. That he learned from an aunt he never met or heard of till three days ago, when he received a call about a tiny favor that his mom had agreed to. Of course she decided to drag him into helping her accommodate the starlet.

"Cousin Ken?" A high pitched voice squealed from behind him. He turned and smiled sheepishly back at the short girl who had her head cocked to the side with a huge grin plastered on her face. He managed to mask the surprise he felt while looking at the girl before him. The picture did not do justice to the young beauty that stood before him. She had what looked to be nine no ten pieces of luggage that she had somehow managed to drag behind her. Her ensemble of a I heart New York shirt with a short white tennis skirt caused a few heads to turn. Long peach legs were clad in white snow boots that came up just above the knee and she wore white fingerless gloves. She had a weird teeny bopper look going on, but she was cute never the less reassuring him that none of the guys really noticed the tackiness of her outfit. There were a few guys already staring at her in awe as she started to bend over to grab the eleventh bag that she had left behind.

"Here let me get that." Ken said grabbing the bag before she could bend over all the way. He caught a glimpse of her white underwear with what he thought to be orange hearts and he was sure others had seen as well. 'This girl is more oblivious than Chun Li was.' Ken thought as Minako thanked him by bowing in respect, giving another nice panty shot to the perverts behind them. "Please don't bow here in America that's a sign of disrespect." He whispered to her looking around suspiciously as if he was scared that someone was listening. Her eyes grew large and she covered her mouth with both hands.

"Oh I'm so sorry if I offended you Cousin Ken. I won't do it again." She said in thickly accented English, but it wasn't Japanese that he had assumed she would speak. He had been to London a few times and he knew the accent.

She had spent her younger years in London with her father for a while. Or so his mother had told him in her thirty minute preview of Minako Aino. Her eyes started to fill up with unshed tears and she resembled a bizarre cartoon character

"That's ok. I didn't mean to make you cry, Let's get out of here. I want to let you taste some fine American cuisine." Ken said wrapping his arm around her shoulder and pulling her along with him. Minako turned her head back toward her belongings, but noticed some men in uniforms had picked them up and were now trailing behind them.

With a loud sniff Minako's eyes cleared and she smiled at Ken resembling a seventeen year old again. "Show me to this cuisine! Let's make merry to a feast that's quite berry."

'That didn't even make sense...'

* * *

" Ami come quick this way."

"Chido slow down I can't...can't keep up with you."

"Hurry please Ami, just a little farther."

"You said that...ten minutes...ago!"

"Ami!"

"I'm hurrying!" Ami huffed inwardly cursing her lack of physical prowess. And also cursing Chido's youth and energy. 'I'm thinking like an old women now, I must be going crazy.' she thought as she skimmed a sharp corner in an attempt to not lose sight of Chido. She didn't even bother to look down at the dress that her mother had sent from Germany since she was sure it was ruined.

"I hear them Ami." Chido said pausing at the top of the staircase that Ami was slowly climbing. Her navy blue hair was stringy and wet against her pale face as she gripped the dilapidated railings for support. Her leather medical bag was hanging off her shoulder and was occasionally skimming the red dirt road that they traveled. The sensible at the time of purchase hiking boots with wool insides, were making her feet sweat and it was adding to her discomfort. As for the previously mentioned baby blue dress was stained at them hem a russet color with small rips and the strap kept falling off of her right shoulder.

"I don't hear anything Chido. Are you sure you know where we're going?" Ami asked trying to mask her annoyance with the boy as he once again started running after she reached the top of the staircase.

"Of course I know where I am going Ami. I know this village like the back of my hand. I've lived here forever." He said giggling at her supposed naiveté. His dark brown eyes twinkled with amusement as he looked back at Ami. Her slight scowl was replaced with a tender smile as she looked at the boy. When she had first arrived at the village she did not know if he would even survive the night and now he was out running like any child his age. He was like the sibling Ami had always wanted, but never got.

Ignoring the ache of her body she continued after Chido. His eyes were fierce with a resolve that Ami had never known for herself and that made her sad. Ami had never been so sure of anything that she had done and she was twice his age. Chido was a remarkable kid and he had more responsibility than any seven year old should ever have.

"Just over this bridge Ami." He yelled dashing forward leaving Ami coughing from the kicked up dust. She waved her hands in front of her as she coughed repeatedly from dust that was entering her lungs. She had her eyes shut so she did not see the boulder in front of her until she opened her eyes in shock at the rock that hovered in mid air. Her eyes continued to widened when she realized her body wasn't responding to her brains command to move.

"So you're the foreign child who has come to live amongst us. I was wondering when I would get a chance to meet you."

"Oh dear…"

* * *

"Sun, moon, earth, stars, fire, water, lightning, wind!" The raven haired Miko cried throwing ash into the raging fire causing it to double in size. She showed no fear toward the wild flames that licked along the walls of the furnace that encased it. Her eyes glowed dark amethyst as she watched her hands move in an intricate pattern that had been passed down from her family for centuries. Sweat gathered at the center of her palm and dripped down onto the red Shinto leggings that she wore. Her brow was creased from the strain on concentration that she struggled to maintain.

"Rowen, Reissa, Rinka, Russa, Ryanna, Rayna, Raya, Rei! I your daughter call upon your power to show me the source of this doom that I feel." Rei paused to take a deep breath and her eyes looked up at the fire that had continued to grow in size.

With a roar the flames raced towards the roof and a image appeared before her eyes. Cold eyes of the palest blue glared down at her as she watched with fear as two hands one blue and the other red reached out for her. She had never had a vision reach out for her and she scrambled back.

"Stop!"

Everything faded to black.

**Hello, this is Fatal Mars also known as girl of darkness. This will be alternate universe (but kinda following the 3rd strike timeline) for both anime's since I want to add characters at my leisure. This is a Makoto Kino fan fiction, but all of the senshi (not sailor moon) will play a role. To give a rough timeline in the street fighter universe its roughly at the start of the 3rd strike and in the sailor moon universe its roughly after Galaxia (but it doesn't really matter for the girls).**


	2. Setting The Pace

"Oh, wow, wow, wow! Cousin Ken, look at it! This is amazing it's Hollywood!"

"Head in limo Minako!"

"But look, the people here are so nice. They wave Ken, they're waving at me!" Minako pulled her head inside, but continued to wave at the pedestrians.

With that being said, Ken poked his head out of the top of the limo and looked toward the sidewalk that Minako was facing. Traffic had rolled in along this street, from what seemed to be drivers gawking at the 'people' around them. Ken couldn't help, but gawk at the people dressed in weird clothes parade around the street. 'Is this a colt?' Ken thought feeling uncomfortable with the female attention that was directed at him. Not that he had a problem with women gawking at him. Nope not a problem at all, his problem was the desperation and … love in the girls eyes as they started with large eyes only focused on him.

"Anime expo …. hum…what's that Ken?" Minako asked her lips drawing together into an adorable 'O' expression. Ken shrugged his shoulders at her stating he didn't have a clue. He weirdly felt drawn to the place and wished he could stop by, but that damn sure wasn't going to happen. After having his first child Ken liked to believe that he turned over a new leaf of maturity that supposedly he had lacked in the past. With his leaf now turned he had evolved into a 'family man' of sorts and wanted to do everything in his power to protect those that he deemed as his 'family'. Even though he had not know Minako for a long time he had categorized her as family and he would protect her like he would protect his wife or mother. So with that being said he scanned the area and picked out all of the perverts in advance and knew that it would be risky taking her there. He also feared for his own well being as desperate eyes turned into those of hunger. Unfortunately traffic had all, but stopped completely.

"I might as well cancel out reservations." Ken said in annoyance as he pulled out his small cell phone from his suits inner pocket.

A gasp from Minako brought him out of his musings as he looked back at her to see what was wrong. Her large powder blue eyes grew disturbing large at what looked to be shock and reorganization, but at what Ken pondered as he looked ahead at the crosswalk that had pedestrians on it even though the light was a vibrant green. Ken rolled his eyes and was about to sit down and tell the driver to honk his horn, but something stopped him. Now it was his turn to gasp in awe at the creature that was walking directly in front of him.

Violet eyes flashed angrily with thin black eyebrows slanted anger to heightened their intensity. Those eyes were only part of the reason why there were no horns honking Ken thought as he admired the supple tan legs that seemed impossibly long and beautiful. The tan she had was of a light bronze hue that could only be achieved by being out in the sun for hours on end, something that a tanning bed could never replicate. Her dark red dress stopped at mid-thigh, but it kept hiking up due to her angry strides, but Ken wasn't one to complain at the spaghetti straps that were stretched tight over her breast that looked perky even though she wasn't wearing a bra. (Ken was a ladies man so of course a veteran such as himself could tell these things from a glance.) Her dusky pink lips were moving rapidly and her sensuous raven black hair brushed past her lips in a most provocative way.

"Now aren't you a tall glass of water?" Ken said falling back into the limo to regain his bearings. She was the exact opposite of what Eliza was in every single way. He'd always had a thing for the demure, but sexy type of girl he reasoned with himself. Sure that girl was one of those things and he was damn sure it wasn't demure.

* * *

The taxi ride from hell would be forever etched in Rei's mind and would ward her against any of the dreadful taxis in the future. Her grandpa had said she would have a car waiting on her, but of course she should have known he would have half assed it. Now here she was in America with only two suitcases, a large amount of Japanese's currency and a name. 'But that doesn't mean shit if no one here can understand you,' she thought darkly as she bypassed yet another strangely dressed youth who didn't have the decency to move out of her way while he gawked at her.

Rei's English was not the best in her class, but it wasn't the worst either so she thought she would be able to make it in America alone without hiring a translator. When she had announced to her grandfather that she was leaving Japan immediately after her graduation from her catholic high school he had smiled and said ok. She immediately started to go into reasons of why she should go and made it to three before she took in what he had actually said. He didn't need to know why Rei did things, because he knew his granddaughter never did anything without a strong purpose. He had laughed once she stopped with a confused look on her face and said, "Rei even if I demanded you stay here would you listen to this old man?" He had asked with a chuckle that brought a rare smile to his granddaughters' face and she stepped forward and engulfed him in a bear hug.

After that day Rei had spoke to her teachers at her school and they gave her a crash course into the English language, a class she had decided not to take instead moving towards French as her second language. She was now regretting not taking English solely. She had retained knowledge of the basics, but she still needed to know more, but her time had run out. She had decided to decline a contract with a modeling agency in France so she could come to the states.

About a month before her graduation her father had called her to wish her a happy birthday. She was cordial and even confided in him about her plans to come to America. His negative response shocked her since she though he would be pleasantly surprised that she was going abroad like he had when he was younger. He even had the nerve to forbid her from going, which caused her fiery temper to flare up as they prepared to battle. In the end she had won simply because her father had never seen this side of her before, but his only catch was that she had to come and see him while she was there. Her first thought was to tell him no, but she knew she needed a reason to come to America. So sighing she said yes and agreed to visit her father who would be residing in Los Angeles at the time of her arrival.

Now here she was in Los Angeles lost and very much annoyed. She had to find someone who spoke Japanese so she could get to her hotel before it got dark. Rei knew universally you didn't want to be lost anywhere in the dark. She felt her stomach grumble and she cursed her horrible luck once again. She had not managed to find a currency exchange station so she had no way of doing anything here that involved cash. The cab driver had said that her grandpa had not paid for the cab ride to a certain point so she had either pay or get out. Rei was too proud to ask the man for anything after all he hadn't even helped her put her suitcases into the trunk. As soon as she exited she was thrown into a place of weirdoes and perverts in her mind. They had tried to talk to her, but Rei didn't trust the looks in their eyes or the happiness they gave off. It was all so weird.

So she walked hoping to at least get away from all of the commotion so she could plan out her next move. She made it to a busy intersection and stood waiting a signal so she could cross. She pressed the red button multiple times due to her impatience, but five minutes passed and she was still unable to cross. 'Screw it.' She thought eyes slanted in determination as she crossed the intersection. She held her head up high and did not focus on any of the noise and conversation around her as she did her best to focus on crossing, but there was this one annoying voice that was breaking her concentration. No make that two voices.

"Rei-sama is that you? I am such a huge fan! You're so pretty!"

And was that , her eyebrow twitched…a whistle?

"Now aren't you a tall glass of water?" Ken Masters said titling his head to the side in order to catch her eye. Now this girl couldn't be older than twenty one so Ken had to ask himself once again why he was messing with her. Part two of this big problem he was having was that he was a happily married man with a son. The skirt chasing days should have been in the past, but yet here he was pinning after a fiery tempest who's eyes told him he didn't have a snowballs chance in hell. That look should have slowed him down and the picture of Eliza and Mel should have stopped him cold.

"You dog!" Rei screamed in English for lack of any other words as an insult. The look in this man's eyes is what bothered her the most. It was an obvious attraction that was shadowed in doubt. That doubt showed her that he should know better. She growled and looked over at the girl with dental blond hair that was waving at her. 'Sailor V. I LOVE sailor V!' Rei thought, but still managed to keep a nonchalant look on her face. Maybe this pervert was her agent and if she remembered correctly Sailor V was Japanese and her mother lived in Rei's home town. She wondered why she had never met her before now, but for some reason she felt as though she had known the girl forever.

"Sailor V! Please help." Rei asked walking toward the limo hoping that she looked as helpless as she believed she sounded. Minako let out a shriek that made Ken held his ear. Who the hell was Sailor V and how did Minako know this girls name? Why was she even more stunning up close?

"Rei-sama is someone after you? Well don't worry! Ken-itoko will protect you so get in the car." Minako said holding open the door to the limo to let Rei in. Ken could only look on in amusement as Rei cautiously got into the car and spoke to Minako in Japanese. The funniest part was that Minako didn't ask him once was any of this okay with him.

Minako was ecstatic that she had managed to meet Rei Hino, Juban's very own home grown model. She had read articles about her and admired her looks as well as her wisdom. Once she had even went to Hikawa shrine in hopes of meeting her. Ever since she first saw Rei on a bill board in London while she was filming Sailor V she had a feeling as if she knew her. 'This must be fate!' she thought starry eyed as Rei settled herself in the limo.

"Thank you so much Sailor V. America has been a very hard place for me alone. I am so sorry for the inconvenience that this is causing you, but I would appreciate it if you took me to this place." With that being said she pulled a black envelope from the front pocket of her suitcase and handed it to Minako. She took it and looked at Rei with a bright smile on her face.

"You don't have to call me Sailor V all the time Rei-sama. Minako is what my friends call me." Rei smiled genuinely and her eyes lightened up and Ken felt his breath catch. She was completely different from Eliza who was more like a angel whereas this girl was a sultry devil.

"What's that you got there Minako?" Ken asked and Minako handed him the black envelope. She helped Rei put everything in the car and they took a left at Ken's request to the driver to find an alternate way to a new restaurant. As soon as he touched the envelope things didn't feel right and as soon as he opened it his feelings were solidified. He didn't read everything that was on the paper since it was written in kanji and he didn't know much besides his name and a few other things. What he did see was the signature at the bottom that had Illuminati with the subscript 3rd world warriors tournament. He had no idea what a girl like this was doing with something like this, but he was going to find out.

"Hey Minako ask Rei if she would like to join us for lunch."

* * *

"I really don't think you should be moving sir. You must rest for at least a week before you even attempt to move." Ami said while wrapping up the hand of the old man Chido had brought her to. He had told her quite a tale of how he had come to be injured and she had trouble picking out what was actually true.

"Girl I am not a stupid man. I have been alive for over 100 years let me tell you and I will be up by the end of the hour. I'm one with the earth girl and she gives me her power." The man who introduced himself simply as 'Oro the wonder' said, flicking Ami on the nose with the same hand she was trying to wrap. Ami was never known to anyone as having a temper, but if he whacked her on the nose one more time then she might turn over a new leaf. Chido on the other hand was fascinated with the man and hung on his every word. Ami didn't have the heart to tell the boy that the man was crazy.

"Tell me again Oro about Ryu!" Chido pleaded bouncing around the cave. He had went home and brought back some mangos and sweet bread for them to eat while Ami fixed Oro's severed finger. At first she had been disturbed to see such an old man with a severed finger and she doubted her ability to reattach the appendage, but she was amazed at how well the finger took once she had sown it back together. It didn't make since medically for this man to be so physically fit.

"Ryu is a strong boy well maybe not a boy he is a man, but I am so old so everyone seems like children to me. I have seen that boy kick a lot of peoples asses, but still keep his focus as well as a pure heart." Ami glared at Oro when he said asses, but decided not to interrupt the story since Chido was enjoying himself so much. "When I go like we all must do I want to have left something in this world. I have done many things that have benefited me, but if I give Ryu the power of my senjutsu so that he can use it to do good on this earth. I have seen many people who were good, but their hearts were weak and they allowed power to corrupt them, but Ryu is different. What a kind boy he is and if I could just find him I again I would give him my power and go from this world." Oro then stopped and turned his head away from Chido and Ami.

Ami patted the old man's forehead and smiled down at him her eyes twinkling. "Well with me around I don't think it will be happening to soon Oro. Now I am leaving you some pills to take every six hours after you have had a meal. I want you to make sure that you eat before taking these pills and stay in bed. I will come by tomorrow Oro and you have better not moved from this cave. Now I am going to go, but I will come back tomorrow to check on your status."

Oro turned his head back and patted her hand now and gave her a grin. "I think I shall take you with me. It would be nice for Ryu to meet a cute girl that could patch him up. A perfect match if you ask me." Ami fought the urge to laugh at the mans antics. One moment he was so serious and the next he was joking around on her. This was better than flirting with her which was what he had done when Chido left to get some food.

Chido tried his best to clamp both hands over his mouth and cover his yawn, but Ami had heard it. "As much as I would love to stay here and chat Chido needs to get home and rest." Chido moaned in annoyance and Ami gave him a stern glance.

"Well I'll see you tomorrow girl, don't forget to bring a cute dress. Boys love girls in cute dresses." Oro said while drifting off into a medical induced sleep that Ami had caused. Gathering her supplies and Chido's hand she left the cave not knowing what tomorrow would hold for her.

* * *

Haruka struggled to think of what she was going to do for the rest of the day. She had seen Makoto off to the airport just as Setsuna had told her to do even if she didn't want to. If she would have known that Setsuna was giving her the child for a time then she would have never invested all that time into her. The worst part of it all was the betrayal in Makoto's eyes when realized Haruka was not joking around.

Michiru walked up and placed her hands on Haruka's shoulders and started to give her a massage. She was sad to see Makoto go, but she was not one to go up against Setsuna. If she wanted Makoto to go to America than she must have a reason for sending her there. She was more worried about the lady 'Rose' who had accompanied Makoto on the plane. The woman's eyes were to serious and held something there that made Michiru want to reevaluate herself, as if she was peering into her very soul.

"She's alone Michi and there's nothing I could have said to make her feel otherwise." Haruka moaned turning in her chair so her face was buried in Michiru's stomach as quiet sobs took over her. Michiru just held her lover to her stomach and did her best to wish away the pain she was feeling. Her deep blue eyes strayed to the weapon that Makoto had left behind. It was broken in half in the girls anger at everyone as she ran to go pack with the quiet Rose trailing behind her. Michiru did not trust that woman and had wanted to follow, but Setsuna had stopped her.

"You can't understand it now, but what Makoto needs you are unable to offer her. She has a beast inside her that will consume her being if she does not feed it. In the land of her father she will find the food to satisfy her hunger." Setsuna said turning her back on the girls leaving a heavy feeling of dread on them both. Michiru would have to burn that weapon tomorrow.

**Complete! Next chapter all the girls will finally be in America and should be up in 2 weeks! I will also try to introduce more of the street fighter 3rd strike cast!**


	3. Gathering The Players

"Duck!"

"What do you think I'm doing?" Ami yelled at the Chinese man whose hand she currently held. She could not believe how her trip to America was continually going downhill. First she had to sit on a cramped plane next to Oro, which wouldn't have been so bad if the older man had bathed. During the entire flight he was constantly moving some part of his body so she barely managed to get any sleep. His mouth was the favored body part of movement that was constantly telling her of his earlier days as a wondering fighter. Ami was not one for violence so these stories only made her turn her nose up in disgust. Or maybe that was his smell she pondered.

The second reason of why America was the land of the unruly was the two Chinese twins that she encountered on her way out of the airport. A crowd had surrounded the pair and there were no cops in sight to break up the fight. Ami couldn't stand to see anyone hurt if she could prevent it, but she was not well versed in breaking up a fight. But that wasn't going to stop her from trying.

"Oro we need to stop them." She had said while trying her best to 'politely' make her way to the front of the crowd. It was rather hard with all of the young people trying their best to make it to the front. Luckily for her she was of smaller stature and managed it better as she made her way through.

"Stop them? Why Ami I am just an old man." Oro said not moving from her suitcase that she had sat behind the crowd.

"Don't give me that! I happen to know your health history! We have to stop those boys at once!" And that she did. Once she had called her professors in Germany and told them about Oro they were thrilled and wanted to meet him their selves, but that had posed a problem for Oro. The problem was the fact that Oro wanted to attend a fighting tournament, but he had politely invited Ami to attend with him. She reported this back to her teachers and they gave her permission to extend her trip and go to America. Fortunately Ami had been born in America so she had dual citizenship, but she was a little uneasy as she pondered how Oro could have got a passport at such short notice. So with the blessings of her teachers and Chido she had packed her bags and drove them both to the airport.

Unfortunately in her attempt to scold Oro and make her way to the fighters she had stumbled and fell right in between the two brawlers. She fell on her hands and knees and felt the burn of ripped skin as she attempted to right herself. Her eyes managed to catch the flashing figures that were rapidly heading towards her. They were twins and the easiest distinction between the two was one had a long brown braid with a cap pulled tightly over his head while the other had a long spiky bang that covered the left side of his face. That was all she really managed to see before they were upon her. The twin with the long brown braid had managed to toss her over his shoulder before his brother nailed her with a crouching spin kick. Ami's eyes widened as her world became a blur and her stomach lurched at being moved around in an awkward position.

"Do you have a death wish or something?" He asked while he dodged his twins deadly palm attacks. Ami could only shake her head against his back since she could not find her words. She had never been close to a fight and the fact that she could have been wounded scared her.

"Put the girl down and fight me!" The twin with the long spiky brown bangs yelled grazing the side of Ami's leg in an attempt to strike his twin. She winced, but didn't cry out since she was more stunned than hurt. Her arms tightened around the braided twins neck.

"Ok." Replied the pony tailed twin as a wide smile appeared on his face. Without hesitation, Ami was used as a dodge ball and thrown toward the second man. This time Ami did scream and loudly into her new 'protector's' ear.

"This is not a game Yun!" Ami's new protector Bangs yelled as he jumped out of the way with her in his arms to avoid his brothers lift kick to the chin. Ami held onto his shirt desperately as she tried to stop shaking. 'Why won't they just stop and let me down.'

"I know that Yang! I can't help it that she fell into my arms." Yun yelled jabbing at Yang as he continued to jump around with Ami bridal style. Even though she was scared she couldn't help, but admire his swift strikes that were mere inches from her face.

"I didn't fall into your arms! I was merely trying to stop this senseless violence!" Ami said regaining her voice and scowling at Yun who gave her a cheeky grin. Ami scowled and shut her mouth knowing that her words were falling on deaf ears. It wasn't as if they could understand the oath she took as a traveling doctor in training.

"How about whoever wins gets to take her on a date?" Yun asked his brother who was slowing his dodges due to the extra weight in his arms. His bangs covered his eyes, but the smirk on his face told Yun all he needed to know.

"What? I will not go on a date with either of you! Unhand me at once!" Ami yelled outraged at the silent agreement that had gone on between the two. 'If this is how 'dating' is done in America then I want no part in it.' She thought crossing her arms.

"As you wish." Yang said dropping Ami on the ground suddenly before launching himself as Yun. Ami groaned and rubbed her bottom, before slowly rising to her feet. She took five cautious steps backwards, before she was completely immersed in the crowd. Even though her body was moving her eyes never strayed from the fight before her.

She had never seen anything more beautiful in her life. The only thing she could compare it to was a ballet her mother had taken her to when she was a little girl. The twins seemed to predict the others moves so the fight consisted mostly of elaborate dodges, quick strikes and acrobatic flips and spins. They were amazingly agile and graceful as if this was a show that they were putting on.

"Kung Fu is an amazing art form. For such young ones to have mastered some of it at a young age is amazing." Oro whispered into Ami's ear. Ami wanted to yell at him for not helping her, but she could not manage to tear her eyes away from the fight before her.

Oro chuckled as he watched Ami's dark sapphire eyes move back and forth while following the twins. Even though he wanted to see the girl with Ryu he didn't particularly mind the twins. Their joking and flirtatiousness reminded him of his younger days and now he supposed. Even though Oro believed that he was much better looking than the two.

Yun had Yang's right hand wrapped around his legs as he attempted to capture the boys swinging legs before he kicked him again. His nose was bloody and he felt his left eye swelling up from a punch he received, but he gave back good strikes as much as he received. Yang's lip was split and he was favoring his left arm so it was probably fractured. Another kick, this time to his left eye brought Yun out of his musing as he attempted to roll his twin over and pin him, but Yang had managed to twist his wrist from between Yun's leg.

"Senkyutai" Yang yelled as a dark green aura enveloped his arm and a gust of wind whipped through the air. Ami shielded her eyes as she felt the wind pulling at her white baby doll shirt and then it stopped. She hesitantly opened her eyes and saw something that made her gut churn.

Yang's leg was bent at an awkward angle near Yun's head, She could see Yang's grimace of pain and she ran out to them. Yun seemed to be fairing better and from what Ami could tell he was the victor of the battle. Oro followed Ami as the crowd dispersed obvious annoyed at the wind that had disrupted them from seeing the final moments of the fight.

"Guess I win little brother!" Yun said as he stood up before his twin pumping his fist into the air.

Ami who was now poking at Yang didn't seem to notice his comment as her hands lightly squeezed Yang's calf. The younger twin held his head down low to hide his red cheeks, but Yun could sense his twins discomfort and started to chuckle.

"Listen doll unless you want Yang to die from a massive nose bleed I suggest you remove your hands from his leg." Yun said picking up his hat that had fallen during the battle.

"I am a doctor and your brother is injured." Ami yelled at Yun.

"I'm fine." Yang said trying to pull his leg from Ami's grasp, but it only caused him to slump to the floor in pain.

"Don't move! I think you have a fractured tibia. You should really go see a doctor."

"I thought you were a doctor." Yang said looking at Ami with narrowed deep brown eyes that caused the girl to blush.

"I am…am studying to be a doctor. Sorry." She said timidly letting go of his leg and rising to her feet looking for her luggage.

"Here ya go Ami. Figured you would want to treat the boy yourself." Oro said smiling at Ami as he held out her navy blue shoulder bag that held most of her medical supplies. She eyed Oro warily, but accepted the bag with a gentle nod. She pulled out a brace and looked shyly up at Yang. She didn't want to ask the boy to take off any articles of clothing fearing that Oro or his twin would tease her.

"I think I'll take him to a real doctor if you don't mind Ami-chan" Yun said drawing out the chan much to Ami's annoyance. She wanted to protest, but she knew it was probably for the better since she wasn't a licensed doctor.

"You should go now his leg needs immediate attention." Ami said putting her supplies back in the suitcase and turning around to face Oro who was making low grunting noises.

"Aren't you going to give him your address Ami-chan?" Oro said making her scowl return.

"And why would I do such a scandalous thing?" She asked turning her sapphire eyes to Yun daring him to say something.

"Because we have a date tomorrow."

He didn't disappoint.

* * *

Makoto slowly withdrew from the crowd and looked back at the petite blue haired girl with worry. She had been surprised to see a fight break out before her eyes and as it progressed she had felt excitement run through her veins. She had rarely seen any fights without weapons, but she had often preferred to fight using her hands even though she didn't get to so very often. Her father had been the first to teach her how to fight.

A sad smile came to Makoto's grim face as she thought back to her parents. Her mother was a loving house wife who doted on her family while her father had been an navy man turned business man. She had loved when he told her story of his brawler days when he was in the military instead of listening to a boring bed time story. He had even agreed to train her formally after their trip to visit Mako's grandfather in Japan. That trip had been the end of her happy life and forced the girl to mature quickly. She had spent a horrible two weeks as a ward to the Japanese government before her uncle that she had never met picked her up. As they walked out of the orphanage and to his car he told her he had no desire to raise a young girl, but had a student that was willing to take her in. He was an ex music teacher and his old student had been Michiru Kaioh.

"Makoto are you coming?" Rose asked noticing the brunette had stopped. Ever since they had left Makoto's home the girl had been going through various 'mood swings'. At some point in time she had been enraged, sad, shocked, worried and put out, but now the girl had a nonchalant attitude that worried her. She had promised Setsuna that she would get the girl to America and through the tournament, but the girl was proving to be most difficult. Her shifting emotions were making it hard for Rose to gauge how she would be as a fighter. The potential was there, but she had seen many potentially great fighters fall to the lure of darkness. If Makoto was not able to learn some restraint of emotions than there would be no way for Rose to teach her. The soul power that she possessed was a power that she battled every day to control. One slip up and she could lose her mind to the strength of such a power.

'I have lost one student to my failure and I will not do it again.' She thought with a small frown. She was wary about taking on another pupil, but she believed in Setsuna's ageless wisdom.

"Rose will we see more fights like that?" Makoto asked her emerald eyes lighting up with excitement. Rose gasped in surprise, but quickly recovered and brought her pale hand to her chin as if she was thinking.

"We will be seeing a lot more fights Makoto, but in order for you to participate you must become stronger." Rose answered her large oval eyes narrowing to gauge the girls reaction. Emerald eyes narrowed in determination and Rose nodded her head in approval.

"What will it take to make me stronger?"

"You must empty your mind Makoto. I will attempt to teach you my art, but you must know that raw power is nothing without skill." Rose said touching the girls clinched fist. She could feel the brute force in her fist and she knew that Makoto would definitely be a powerhouse that would surprise her opponents.

"I want to be stronger. I want power so that I can..." Makoto said eyes turning back to the blue haired girl that was kneeling in front of the banged boy. "...protect" she whispered turning her eyes back to Rose.

"The first step is to have a goal for your power. Without a purpose for your power it is easy to fall prey to darkness."

"I used to fight to be stronger. I fought so I could beat Haruka and be the best fighter."

Rose could see her eyes water slightly and she walked forward and touched a hand to the girls shoulder. Makoto did not turn away from the touch and Rose's small lips turned upward. Emotions weren't so bad.

* * *

A sigh of annoyance left Minako's lips as she glared at the back of Ken's head. Not only did she not get to eat at fancy American restaurant, but she now was in a police station of all places. She had been offered a seat, but had opted to stand after a scruffy looking prisoner brushed her leg and winked at her. The only reason that she didn't call her aunt, besides Ken's pleading, was the beautiful Chinese woman that had shown up to bail her cousin out.

Minako was starting to feel like an ugly duckling due to the pretty woman she had met within the course of two hours. 'How annoying I am supposed to be the super star.' She thought eyeing Rei who was still seated and had a deep scowl on her face. Minako assumed that this was due to what had happened earlier.

"_I thankful your help, but I do not want to eat with you, sorry Minako."_

_"It's ok Rei."_

"_You speak English?" Ken asked causing Rei to roll her eyes in annoyance._

"_If let me out at the corner I would be grateful." Rei said gathering her suitcases around her foot. The man must have thought that she was a fool. It had taken all of her will not to yell at Minako for letting him take the invitation. She had assumed that this man was her bodyguard and therefore should not touch things that did not influence Minako directly._

"_We couldn't do that Rei-sama you're all alone." Minako said eyes wide in horror at the thought of Rei being on her own. _

_A small reassuring smile appeared on Rei's face and she patted Minako's hand. "I'll be fine."_

"_Listen Rei I will not allow a beautiful woman in a strange new place to face the dangers of Los Angeles on her own. I'm a gentleman after all." Ken said holding his hand to his chest and bowing before her at the waist. Rei snorted in disgust._

"_I want out, now." She growled picking up her shoulder bag and putting her hand on the door handle. Her eyes locked onto Ken as she waited on him to tell the driver to stop, but he returned her heated gaze as if he was calling her bluff. Rei Hino did not bluff._

"_You wouldn't"_

"_Rei!" Minako screamed as the girl opened the door and the driver screeched to a stop. She quickly grabbed her bags and pulled them from the limo. She gracefully righted herself and walked toward the sidewalk. _

_Rei's face was contorted into anger as she replayed Ken's words over the past twenty minutes. All he had done was flirt with her and eye her lewdly. It wasn't as if this was new to her, but the way he chose to act was familiar to her in a painfully way._

_ Before her father had started traveling abroad he would visit her at the temple once a month. For as long as she could remember he would bring Kaiduo with him and each time she would fall more and more in love with him. He was the complete opposite of her father, which made her wonder how he could work for the man. He would always bring her some sort of stuffed animal with some crazy story of how he got it. While her father worked on his laptop or talked on the phone Kaiduo would play and talk to the growing girl. When she turned thirteen Kaiduo would always complement her on her looks and threaten to beat up any boy who messed with his 'little Rei-chan'. She would of course insist that she had no boyfriend and blush at the attention. By the time she was fifteen she was ready to confess her love to Kaiduo when he announced his engagement. Rei was heartbroken and confused due to the fact that Kaiduo would flirt with her as well as bring her gifts. In a foolish attempt to win him she had burst into his guest room wearing nothing by a short nightgown offering up her virginity. Kaiduo had laughed at her and she had burst into tears running to her room. She had cried into her pillow until she heard the door open and looked to see Kaiduo with a somber look on his face. That night he had taken her virginity and not once did he look at her face. The next day he was gone and Rei never saw him again or her father._

_Rei hated men. It had not been hard to keep hating them since men never bothered to get to know her. Things had only been worse since she started modeling, but Rei had managed. She maintained an air of aloofness at the stares of adoration and managed to mask her anger with a blank look. Unfortunately this had all been shattered when she met the stupid blond man. It was Kaiduo all over again with his suggestive teasing, confidence bordering on arrogance as well as the commitments. Rei had seen the wedding ring that he did not bother to hide and it infuriated her with each passing second. Rei refused to be anyone's whore. _

_A firm grip on her arm caused her to abruptly stop mid step and tumble backwards into Ken's arms. The blond quickly grasped her other arm and held her against him. He had meant to let her go immediately, but her soft curves were calling to him. Her silky strands tickled his arms and he couldn't stop himself from sniffing the top of her head. Her scent was of cinnamon and black pepper that tingled his nose, but it was oddly pleasant. Her dress was paper thin and he could feel her curved bottom pressing against his thigh. The vibrations of her body were causing him to lose his train of thought and his hands started to slip forward._

_Rei could not stop her body from shaking at the injustice that was happening. The pervert had the nerve to grab her and then he promptly started to manhandle her Rei did not bother to try and move from his grip, because she could feel the quiet power that lurked beneath his palms. But even though she choose not to challenge his grasp she would not take this. _

'_The nerve.' The nerve her mind repeated over and over like a mantra. She was toying with the idea of trying to kick him in the groin when the unthinkable happened._

"_You hentai!" She screamed once she felt Ken's hands wrap around the front of her in a sort of bear hug. His head was nuzzling her head and his large hands were not idol as they palmed her breast._

"_Ken you pervert." Minako said as she walked up to the pair, growing tired of waiting in the car for their return. At first she did not see Rei due to Ken's vast form, but as she got closer she managed to catch Ken's wondering hands in the act._

_Ken snapped out of his daze and noticed the horrible position he was in. Well horrible for Rei._

"_Unhand her now and put your hands up!"_

And that is how they ended up at a police station instead of a wonderful restaurant. Minako had tried to talk to Rei, but the girl had a horrifically beautiful scowl on her face as she muttered 'injustice', while shaking slightly. Minako was scared and awed at the look on Rei's face so she decided that it would be best to leave her on her own for now.

Now she focused her curious eyes on Chun-Li. The woman looked to be in her late twenties and she was beautiful. Her eyes were a deep brown that had greeted her with an innocent curiosity when she introduced herself as Ken's cousin. Her nose was really tiny and her pink lips seemed to be in a permanent pout that was currently making passersby trip in order to get a closer look. Minako would kill for a pout like that. The most impressive part of Chun-Li had to be her powerful looking legs. She was roughly the same height of Minako, but her legs seemed to be so much longer with tons of muscles. She wore coffee colored stockings that accentuated their silkiness and she wore a pair of cute dark blue flats. The rest of her outfit was a knee length navy pencil skirt and a baby blue buttoned down short sleeved dress shirt. She was wearing a navy blazer when she had come in, but had taken it off while negotiating Ken's release. She had claimed that it was hot, but Minako knew that she was using her large boobs to do the negotiating forward. At this she looked down at her own B cup chest and poked them with a scowl on her face.

"Ken will be out soon Minako! Luckily Rei has agreed to not press charges." Chun-Li said grasping the blonds hands in a near crushing grip. Minako cringed and Chun-Li let go of her hands and bowed low at the hips in apology.

"Don't do that Ms. Chun-Li its rude." Minako said remembering what Ken had told her earlier at the airport. Chun-Li looked at the girl oddly, but she did right herself and turned to Rei.

"I appreciate you not pressing charges Rei. Please let me know if there is anything that I can do for you?" Chun-Li asked squatting at the knee so she could be eye level with Rei. Minako and a few cops noticed how her skirt rode up her thigh as she squatted.

"Take me to a hotel, any hotel." Rei said looking up at Chun-Li with sorrowful eyes that seemed seconds away from tears.

"Of course Rei I could do that." Chun-Li said touching her hand. At first Rei froze up, but then lifted her other hand and sat it on top of Chun-Li's.

"Thanks."

**This chapter was the hardest thing to write for some reason. Once again this is mildly AU since all Street Fighter 3rd strike characters will be coming to America to make this easier for me. Also the inners are not the same age. The oldest is Rei and then its Ami, Mako and Mina. I am also adding Rose to the 3rd strike crew since she is important to the plot. I also want to thank everyone who has supported me in this process. _Italicized_ stands for flashback.**


	4. Raging Animals

Even though Makoto prided herself on being fast Rose was faster. Much faster. As soon as Makoto managed one strike Rose had already managed to not only evade it completely, but appear behind the girl and lightly tap her with her yellow scarf. The worst part was the taunting Rose would whisper in her ear. She could deal with everything else, but those.

"Can't control your beast."

Makoto's strikes quicken, but she lost her accuracy as well as her composure. She had trained so hard in the past years with Haruka, but even the blond could not match the effortless power Rose posed. When Rose had challenged Makoto to a friendly spar to test her skill the young teen had naively thought that it would be just that. From the start she should have know that it wouldn't be a simple spar when Rose refused to strike her and maintained that cryptic smile even when she talked. Haruka would have never passed up a chance to place 'love taps' all over body. The only 'love taps' she was getting at the moment were to her ego. It was bruising.

"All those emotions are a hindrance."

Rose was struggling to keep her mind on the fight instead of the many thoughts that were shifting around in her head. The prominent thought that was always on her mind was locating and eliminating Bison for good. That single thought had dictated most of her adult life, but she would not let anything stop her. Because of this she had traveled across the world to a land where she had few allies was not an ideal way to go about hunting Bison, but it would have to do for now.

"Running blindly into battle is a fools move."

Punch. Kick. Sweep. Jab. Punch. Kick. Sweep. Jab. It wasn't working. She was not going down. The worst part is that her eyes were glazed and she seemed to be looking past Makoto. A look she knew all to well. Haruka had 'love taped' her senseless when Makoto gave that look during a lesson. 'Pay attention to me!' She thought as she deviated from her routine attacks in exchange for quick jabs at Rose's face.

"What was that fool? I didn't hear you." Rose said blinking rapidly to clear her mind from the thoughts that constantly plagued her. Her ears were ringing from the intensity of Makoto's thoughts and she nearly received a broken nose from Makoto's powerful fist.

"Pay attention to me!" Makoto yelled halting her attacks and bowing her head suddenly. Her frame shook and her hands clinched at her sides. She was completely still before Rose.

"Why should I pay attention to you?" Rose asked placing one foot in front of the other in a cat like motion in a cautious steps toward Makoto. Her lone purple bang fluttered over her eye as a swift gust of wind blew it about. Rose's nose twitched in confusion at the scent of roses that was becoming stronger as the wind grew in strength. The scent was strongest when she set her nose strait ahead toward Makoto. There were no flowers in the area so she could not make sense of why the scent was so strong.

The house she had borrowed from one of her American contacts was not the best space that she had ever been holed up in, but it would due for training purposes. The backyard was nothing but a dilapidated marshland that was not an ideal training ground, but it would also have to do. She eyed her muddied heels in distaste and made a mental note to find a new training ground. It hadn't taken Makoto long to dirty herself as she recklessly attacked with no finesse or thought.

Like a savage beast.

Maybe Setsuna had been wrong. That was something that the green haired woman would never admit to, but as time progressed Rose was losing hope at the prospect of training Makoto as an successor to her soul power.

"Did you not hear me Makoto? Why should I pay attention to you? You're boring me." Rose said emphasizing it with a deep yawn. She had not slept well at all, but then again she rarely slept at all. Makoto however had slept very soundly and Rose had awoken to the girls cries. She had attempted to rouse the girl, but that had only caused her to cry out more. After failing miserably Rose decided to sit beside the girl and try and soothe her by running her hand along her back. At first it had been very awkward, but soon she gained a pattern that had seemed to be working. Before long Makoto's cries had stopped and a soft smile appeared on the girls face. Rose could see the unique beauty the girl possessed at this moment and she smiled. Her beauty was one that had many facets and its most recent one that was very dangerous and feral. Rose's own beauty was not a classic one, but still drew many glances from men and women alike. Thinking back to that time made Rose's eyes widened in shock.

The scent of roses had been slight, but apparent as she comforted Makoto.

"Because….because I need to protect…I must protect them."

"Them?" Rose asked barely able to decipher the girls mumblings. The scent of roses was growing.

"I don't know. I just know that I need to get stronger." Makoto said raising her head with tears in her ducts. She wanted to wipe them away before they fell, but the look in Rose's eyes stopped her from doing so. She looked pleased with what Makoto had said as opposed to the normal looks of disapproval or confusion. She sniffled and unclenched her fist that had dark pink crescent moons from her earlier frustration. The feeling she had gotten earlier was similar to standing in the middle of a thunder storm. Haruka would always scold her for doing so, but Makoto could not help herself, she had always been attracted to thunder. Standing in the forest under the trees while the storm raged on was as if she was among a friend. The static would make the hairs on her body stand on end and that's when Makoto was most alive. That feeling was better than training with Haruka. It was better than anything.

"The second step is complete Makoto you have realized your driving force. Your strength will stem from your need to protect, but tell me Makoto do you smell roses?" Rose asked smiling at the irony that this brash girls strength stemmed from a maternal source.

"I always smell roses."

* * *

Minako sighed in content as she turned off the bath water and looked around the luxurious bathroom once more. Her bathroom wasn't the only thing that awed her, it was the entire wing she had all to herself. Yes wing. Her whole wing was themed after ancient Rome. She had spent her morning on the treadmill in her very own workout room breaking a sweat. When Ken had promised her luxuries he definitely meant it. The Masters lived in a palace and Minako was all to happy to play princess for awhile.

Her favorite room was the bathroom, which was easily the size of her own room back home. Her favorite thing was the vanity which had beautiful crown molding and was a gorgeous cream and gold.

"Maybe I'll stay in America. Its not nearly as bad a mom said. I can do a new spin off! American Sailor V!" Minako said aloud stripping out of her workout clothes and flashing her trademark victory sign at the mirror. She had worked out for three hours straight and her sore muscles were begging for release and Minako was happy to oblige them. She put a cramped foot into the water and sighed in pure bliss at the warm water and bath salts worked wonders. She slowly began to wash, but quickly grew bored with the slowness and sped through the process. Minako had never been good at being patient. Now fully submerged her body except for her face as she looked up at the ceiling longingly. She wished she had someone to talk to.

She had begged Rei to stay, but the girl had been adamant about leaving before Ken was released. So much to Minako's annoyance the girl had left with the beautiful Chun-Li while she dealt with a grouchy Ken. Her cousin had promptly dropped her off at his mothers house and left without a proper goodbye. Chun-Li had given Minako her card in case she wanted to contact her, but Minako wasn't that desperate. Yet.

"I've got to get out of here or…I'll go crazy!" Minako exclaimed jumping out of the bathtub and grabbing a white towel that sat on the counter as she rushed out of the bathroom naked. She ran over to her suitcase and found her pocketbook with the credit card her mother had given her.

"Only for emergencies," She muttered mimicking her mothers stern voice as she held the card delicately in her hands. She gently sat it on the bed and turned her back on it abruptly. Before her was a wall mirror that she hadn't been able to look into since coming to the room. Even now the blonde continued to look at her toes that were pained a deep red. She had wanted orange, but her mother had insisted that the red was more suited for her image. Her mother decided most things for her.

Gathering her courage she looked into the mirror and stared coldly at what she saw. There were so many flaws.

Nose.

Rounded at the tip.

Lips.

Thin.

Breast.

Small.

Hands.

Thin and calloused.

Feet.

Huge.

Glaringly obvious flaws that she tended to hide from, but they were brought up every day, whether it was from her mother, her agent,or the crew. And even herself. When they shot Sailor V her make up had felt heavy, her push up bra painful and her shoes pinching. Whenever someone would poke fun at Minako's flaws she would laugh and readily agree. They had called her laughing girl on the set as inside joke since she always seemed to laugh for to long and hard. Even now she fought the urge to laugh cruelly at the thoughts out of habit.

To make matters worse was the fact that she had been around two of the most beautiful women she had ever seen and no one paid her any attention. Without the glamour of Sailor V Minako was nothing in front of their exotic beauty. To the world they were two different entities. Minako liked to think of her as an alter ego that came when she put on her uniform.

Her mother had taught her to be the best though her acting and even though she had felt total disdain for Chun-Li the woman had commented that she was quite a friendly girl. They always thought that Minako was such a clown and even an air head and despite all this she was a devout A and B student and was well aware that she was often ridiculed or the butt of jokes. In a way Minako was glad that they thought this of her so she could hide her feelings behind a perfect mask.

With a mirthless chuckle her mind drifted back to her cousin Ken. For some reason she had felt the mask fall and that she was developing a genuine personality. It was exhilarating and addictive to be free of the mask and of her mother, but Ken had messed that up when he grouped Rei. She could barely believe her eyes when she got out of the limo and she had been very disappointed. She had hoped that they would be the best of friends like the three musketeers. That was her favorite book, she had read it over twenty times.

Her mom had told her stories of Ken's 'misbehavior' and praised Minako for her model behavior. Though the whole conversation she kept up a look of disdain, but in her head she had admired his free will and strength. A few years later when her mother told her he would be picking her up she had been ecstatic about something for the first time. Well that was second compared to being Sailor V.

Minako didn't want to lose that feeling.

"If Ken won't come to me I will go to him."

* * *

"Ryu that's a boys name." Makoto stated as she quickly followed behind Rose through the crowded streets. Makoto feared being separated from the woman so she stayed on Rose's heels. Even though she had lived in America as a child she had not practiced the language for awhile so she felt a bit subconscious of how she spoke it. Rose had taken to talking to Makoto in English and the girl understood it better than she spoke it.

Her other fear was that Rose would give her away. Ever since she told the woman that she smelt roses, her lips had been in a hard pressed line that made them appear non-existent on her oval face. Makoto had asked what was wrong, but Rose would not answer and instead told her to gather her bags. Even though it had been a short time Makoto had grown to like Rose and even look up to her as a sort of mother figure, she supposed. She had always thought of Haruka and Michiru as tough older sisters who wanted her to do better, but Rose wanted more. She _demanded _that Makoto be better.

"Yes he is a boy in a way." Rose chuckled harshly and caused Makoto to cringed at the sound. It sounded so harsh and cold, which was something she didn't associate with the woman. Yes, Rose did work Makoto, but she had also encouraged the girl in her own way. Makoto blamed herself for being so sensitive to the taunts. If she had been thinking clearly then she would have noticed that Rose only did that to provoke a certain reaction from her.

"So he is a man? Rose I have never been around men before." Makoto asked now even more unnerved about this meeting. There were no males where she lived and she had only met the opposite sex a few times. People would come from all over trying to get Haruka and Michiru to teach their children the arts, but only a few made it past the 'trails' the two presented. Whenever a boy was to be tested she had made it a point to see how they fared. It seemed no one was wise enough to notice that the test made it impossible for boys to pass. Or maybe they did know and they just didn't care.

"Can't he be both?" Rose asked cryptically, but Makoto didn't answer feeling that regardless her answer would be wrong.

After waiting a minute for Makoto's answer and hearing none Rose turned her head back to look at the girl. Makoto caught her eyes instantaneously and looked shyly up at the woman. Rose had been surprised at how tall the Japanese girl had been, but she still had a good four inches on her so intimidation wasn't much of a problem. Not that she had resisted Rose's authority, that would be foolish. Setsuna had said in the past the girl had been a bit of an upstart, but Rose didn't think the girl was more than eighteen, which didn't leave much of a 'past' in her opinion.

"Aren't you just a girl in a woman's body?" Rose questioned smiling softly as she winked at the girl who stared at her in confusion. Makoto could never gauge the older woman's moods.

"And what does that make you?" Makoto muttered darkly feeling cross with the Rose's 'teasing'.

"I would take that as a compliment." She said keeping her head straight ahead.

"I apologize." Makoto said quickly bowing her head.

"That is fine Makoto. I will just attribute that to your beast speaking out of turn." Rose said sternly.

'Again with the beast' Makoto thought sourly. She had constantly been reprimanded by Haruka for letting her 'inner Valkyrie', loving dubbed by Michiru, run wild during their trainings. She tried to maintain to curb her urge to act instinctively, but every method Michiru or Haruka would suggest would never work for her. Makoto knew that she was not at all like other girls and it only bothered her when someone brought it up to her.

Looking around she noticed the scenery had changed from lush woodlands and simple wooden houses turned to bustling streets with people and large metal buildings. Makoto had traveled into the city with Haruka a few times, but that did not prepare her for what she was seeing now. She gasped in awe at the vibrant colors the women wore and a light pink tinge appeared on her cheeks as she noticed some rather handsome males. Makoto noticed the strange looks that they were getting and she had to admit that they made an interesting pair.

Rose's was a tall woman with an interesting fashion since that didn't resemble anything that she was currently seeing. She wore a dark pink dress that was wide at the top and hung off her shoulders and as it went down the dress tighten and split at mid thigh showing off her dark purple stockings and toned legs. Around her small waist hung a huge purple belt with a brass buckle that never moved even when she was dodging Makoto's attacks. Her dress had round brass buttons along her long sleeves and down the front of her dress, this gave her the air of being important. Underneath her dress she wore a dark purple sleeveless tank that was fitted and clung tightly to her neck. Her dark pink heels clacked in a rather soothing gesture as she weaved her way through the throng of people. Rose's most noticeable feature besides her long yellow scarf that hung loosely around her shoulders was her eggplant colored hair. The front bang was a series of zig zags and soft curves that hung mysteriously over the left side of her face while the rest flowed over her back in two distinct zig zags down to her small waist. Her almond eyes never acknowledged the glances and her naturally arched eyebrows were only raised slightly. While she glided Makoto managed not to make a total fool of herself while she followed closely behind her.

Makoto was not nearly as impressive as Rose, but she managed to get a few looks as she walked. Her thick auburn hair was tied back into a tight ponytail that looked painful, but Makoto had grown accustomed to it after wearing it in that fashion for a few years. Her heart shaped face was framed by two stubborn strands of hair that curled at the tip, but the center piece of her face was her large and vibrant emerald eyes. She envied Rose 's pale and unblemished skin compared to her deeply tanned and slightly freckled skin that she had been teased over. Michiru had brought Makoto a kimono for her last birthday, but she had never had a reason to wear it till now. The color matched her eyes perfectly and constricted her movement immensely much to her annoyance. The design was of a large bouquet of pink roses that spanned across her waist and traveled up to her v-neck collar. The stitching of the silk kimono was immaculate and seemed to spring out as if in full bloom. She had decided not to wear traditional geta and instead wore simple black flip flops that Rose had given her. Though far less elegant than the heels Rose wore Makoto was sure that she was more comfortable.

Looking at Rose's heels reminded Makoto of her own ache between her toes from the sandals. They had been walking for quite awhile and Makoto was feeling the strain due to her inappropriate clothing, but Rose had insisted that she dress nice. Nice wasn't going to stop her feet from blistering.

"There it is." Rose said pointing at a large stadium type building that had a large white scroll over the entrance with red letters.

"What does it say?" Makoto asked following Rose's finger.

"The 3rd Street Fighter Tournament."

Makoto's eyes glowed and a small smile came to her face at the prospect of participating in the tournament.

"Will I get to fight?" She asked hopefully.

"No. You will only be watching for now." Rose said picking up her pace to the stadium. Makoto eyed Rose with a mixture of admiration and envy. Even though Rose had not mentioned participating in the tournament Makoto had a hunch she would. She knew that Rose didn't go all out in their little bout earlier so she was eager to see what damage the woman would do in a real match.

"But I thought we were going to see Ryu?"

"You will be seeing Ryu."

"So he's a fighter? Is he any good?" Makoto asked slightly put out as she had a mental image of her in a school girl outfit cheering Rose on.

"He is very good Makoto. Even I would be challenged in a fight against him. That being said I want you to keep an eye on him. He will be the tall Japanese man in the tattered white karate gi. He is also quite easy on the eyes as well." She said smirking.

"What is so important about him anyways."

"Why Makoto he battles a beast as well."

* * *

A gloved hand smoothed down non-existent wrinkles in a knee length strait skirt. The matching gloved hand was smoothing out already flat blue hair. A bright pink mouth was pursed in worry and sapphire eyes shifted back and forth every time the lobby doors opened. The clock read five minutes past eleven and her cheeks were stained pink in a frustrated blush.

"He's late." Ami muttered as she pushed back against the bench and then brought her small feet that were encased in dark blue flats up. She had arrived at the hotels lobby at a quarter past ten so she had time to spare as well as space away from Oro. The old man had woken her up at eight and had chatted her up like an old girlfriend about the specifics of the date. If Ami hadn't been woken up from her sleep she would have been amused at the old mans girlish antics, but since she was Ami only felt annoyed. Annoyance was an emotion that the blue haired girl was becoming more and more familiar with as she stayed in America.

But the meek girl could not stay annoyed with the old man for long as he shifted though her closet and picked out a very respectable outfit. The lacy baby doll shirt was one that her mother had brought her, but Ami had never worn. She supposed it would be appropriate for a date, but she had never been on one. The thought at first had made her nervous and angry, but then she became obsessed with knowing more about the 'date' process. She had spent most of her night reading articles and stories about dating and she now felt confident that she would have the upper hand during the date.

_Even though Ami felt well versed she still felt rather foolish after what had just happened, she was insistent that she would not go on any 'date' while Oro led her towards a cab. Oro had patiently sat through her ranting and venting the whole car ride to the hotel. Ami didn't even notice he hadn't spoken a word until she made it to the receptionist desk and asked for their keys._

"_You have nothing to say on the matter?" She asked handing hi m his room key._

"_Of course not." He said looking up at the high ceiling in a nonchalant manner._

"_Go ahead and say it Oro. It is not like you usually hold your tongue." Ami said annoyed by his silence._

"_Oh Ami you know your grandpa so well!" Oro said happily as he followed the glowering girl to the elevator._

_Ami had been annoyed that he had proclaimed himself as her 'grandpa', but she was more interested in what he had to say. 'Get on with it!'_

"_And in return your grandpa knows you as well. Or at least I thought I did…who would think that my smart granddaughter would be scared of a little date."_

_Ami Mizuno was not scared of a date._

"_I mean its not rocket science, nope not nearly as hard." Oro pondered scratching the few hairs under his chin as he pretended not to take notice of Ami's red face._

"_Are you implying that I am not smart enough to conquer a 'date'" Ami said haughtily as she gave Oro a cold stare._

"_Of course not."_

"_That's what I…"_

"_I'm saying you're not smart enough and you're a chicken." Oro said drawing out the word chicken._

_Ami tried to compose her anger, but her whole body was shaking. Ami Mizuno was not only smart enough, but she was brave. Only bravery would take her to the middle of the Amazon to help people in need. Only the bravest of souls were in her profession of choice. No Ami Mizuno was not a chicken._

_And she was going to prove it._

Ami had realized that Oro had manipulated the conversation later on in her room, but her pride would not let her back down. Her behavior lately was deplorable as well as unusual and she had put herself on a strict punishment. She would 'behave' herself on this date as well as dealing with Oro. She vowed that she would redeem herself and return to being the Ami Mizuno she had been in Germany.

"Well aren't you cute."

With a deep breath she looked up and caught sight of the late Yun. She managed to fight the urge to frown at his greeting as she eyed the boy. His outfit was identical to the one he wore yesterday except for the colors. He wore a sleeveless white kung fu shirt that had blue embroidery and buttons with a high collar that reached his chin. His pants were baggy, but they rested on his hips in a satisfactory manner. His shoes were black with a yellow stripe going down the side of the sneakers. The blue and yellow hat still sat tightly on his head and now Ami managed to notice a patch on the left side of it. She tried to read it, but Yun glanced up and caught her eyes. They were the lightest brown Ami had ever seen, they almost appeared to be a hazel. His nose was short, but pointed and his full mouth was upturned in his familiar wide grin. This time Ami turned red, but it wasn't from anger. The girl also started to feel very itchy.

"And you are late." Ami said rising from the bench and walking toward Yun. She noticed that he was eyeing her in a suggestive manner, but she decided to ignore it and walk past him.

"Well after you." He muttered letting her take the lead to his motorcycle. Not like her really had a choice.

The revolving doors opened before Ami and she looked around in confusion. 'Where is his car?' She thought to herself as she started to walk toward the hotels parking lot.

"Aren't you going to hop on?" He asked as he got onto his bike. Ami's eyes widened and a blush appeared. Images of her in compromising situations on the bike made her feel faint.

"I'm wearing a skirt!" She squealed backing away from Yun and his bike.

"I won't be looking." Yun said jokingly and Ami's lip quivered. She couldn't believe that he was making fun of her justified fear.

"I'll be back." Ami whispered darkly walking back to through the hotels revolving door.

Yun watched the girl storm through the lobby with a large smile on his face. He figured that she was going to go upstairs and compose herself and then return to pick up her dignity. With that thought he laughed suddenly scaring a couple that were returning to the hotel. If Yang was there he would probably elbow Yun for being so obnoxious.

Speaking of his darling baby twin, he couldn't help but be amused at the sulking he had witnessed while he got ready. Yang had been a pain in the ass once he received the cast and was constantly threatening Yun of his impending beat down that would come at the tournament. The twins rivalry was known all across China and the score sheet for wins was currently tipped in Yun's favor.

"I'm ready to go if you are." Ami said smiling politely at Yun. He leaned back and eyed the girl warily. She looked the same except for the sweet smile and tight white shorts that were peaking from underneath her skirt.

"Hop on." He said reaching out a hand to help Ami onto the bike. She accepted the hand and hesitantly lifted up her left leg and put it over the seat of the bike. He pulled her the rest of the way till she was settled tightly behind him. He wordlessly handed her a dark blue and yellow helmet and she put it on her head. Yun started the motorcycle and she wrapped her arms around his waist and held on tightly. At first she tried to not to lay her head on his chest, but it was impossible so she laid her head gently on his back and tried not to focus on his warmth.

Yun heard her quick breaths and chucked to himself as he steered them onto the highway. Even though he usually went for older women there was something very attractive about Ami. Her eyes were huge and were the focal point of her cute face. Her nose was small and her mouth was small, but her lips were plump and absolutely kissable. Her frame was very petite and slender, but she had obvious womanly curves that she displayed in her ridiculously cute outfits. Navy blue hair was choppily cut short and stopped at the nape of her neck and contrasted attractively with her milky white skin. His favorite part of Ami was her high cheeks that would redden with any emotion that she chose to convey too strongly.

Feeling the wind whip through his hair was the best feeling in the world to Yun, besides kicking ass in a street fight of course. He was starting to enjoy the feeling of Ami hugging his frame immensely. He took a swift turn to the right to exit the highway and it caused Ami to gasp against his back and arch the front of her body against him as she hugged him tightly. Yun cringed slightly surprised at the strength she exuded. He caught the exit and drove down the side road to a large park.

Ami's eyes widened in surprise as she look at the people who were outside playing. It had been awhile since she had been in a park and she was surprised that Yun was taking her to one. She had been certain that he would take her to a movie or another private place. He pulled into a parking spot and once again held out his hand so she could get off of the bike. She accepted the hand again and hopped off the bike. As soon as Yun got off Ami handed the boy his helmet and thanked him for letting her borrow it.

"No problem I wouldn't want a pretty girl like you to get hurt while in my care." Yun said shrugging his shoulders and locking the helmet onto his bike. He grabbed his keys and started to walk through the park with Ami close behind him.

Walking past the families brought a smile to her face as it reminded Ami of her own childhood. Even though her parents had divorced when she was young they were always amicable and made time for their daughter. For her birthday they would even sit besides each other and sing her happy birthday. As she got older these movements got fewer and fewer, but Ami had always been a child beyond her years and knew that her parents were out providing for her and living their dreams.

"This is going to be so sweet!" Yun exclaimed as they neared the skate park. There were few skate parks in China so he had been excited about being able to visit one while in Los Angeles. Ami was jolted out of her thoughts and looked around the arena in shock. There were a lot of teenagers skateboarding, rollerblading and riding bikes up and down ramps. Ami's heart felt faint as she thought of all the potential dangers that were literally seconds from happening.

"This can not possibly be the location of our date." Ami pleaded looking at Yun with trouble sapphire eyes. The boy had expected Ami would be mad, but not distraught over the location. Now he was starting to feel bad.

"It will be fun."

"That's what they all say before they meet an untimely end."

Yun laughed uneasily, but Ami's crossed arms and stern expression cut him off.

"But that's why I brought you here Ami. You can patch me up if I get hurt."

"I won't" Ami stated and with that she promptly turned and headed away from Yun and the skate park.

* * *

The driver had been hesitant to take Minako to the 'rough' side of town, but the girl had been insistent about visiting Ken. She had called his phone several times, but he had not picked up and it had upset her. He was supposed to take her to lunch today to make up for yesterdays fiasco, but he didn't even bother calling her. Minako was in love with her aunts house, but she did not want to be locked up in the house waiting for her next photo shoot.

"We have arrived." The driver said stopping in front of a large chrome and brick building. Minako handed the man her credit card and he swiped it. After a few short seconds he handed it back to her and she signed a receipt. She was surprised at how easy it was to use the credit card with her signature.

"Thanks." He muttered unlocking the door and Minako got out of the car. As he drove away the girl waved and then headed for the building. The building didn't look completely finished, but her aunt had said this was where Ken's new dojo would be. She crossed her arms over her chest as she braced herself against cold winds. She should have brought a sweater, but she had been in a rush to leave the house.

Minako wore a dark blue tube top that stopped just above her bellybutton and dark orange Bermuda shorts with matching dark blue tennis shoes. Her thick platinum blond hair was brushed back over her shoulders and parted in the middle. The top part was in a high ponytail that was held together by a small red bow that was fluttering in the wind. She wore navy colored shades with coffee colored lenses and light pink lip gloss on her face. Looking down at her copper colored arms in distaste she made a mental not to tan or sun bathe soon.

"What are you doing here miss." A light, but distinctively masculine voice asked. Minako looked up from her arms and was surprised at what she saw.

A handsome male stood in front of her and she was certain that he couldn't be much older than herself. His skin was the color of milk chocolate and his hair, which was in tight locks of an darker chocolate. His face was very easy on the eyes, but his form was much nicer. He looked cutely confused and his large hand was scratching the back of his head. The rippling muscles of his arms had Minako salivating slightly and his deep brown eyes kept her from straying to far down his body. It was then that Minako noticed that he had a black eye.

"What happened to your eye?" She asked stepping forward and running her fingers along the bruised eye. Minako rarely took regard of people's personal space.

"I got it while training. It doesn't hurt much so don't worry about it." He said not pulling away from her rough hands even though he did seem uncomfortable.

"Well I can't help, but worry about it. It looks so painful." Minako said softly lowering her eyelids demurely.

"…Uh…" He stuttered as Minako's face drew closer to his own, but he didn't pull back.

"Nurse Minako will make it all better." She said smiling softly as he lips descended on his for a sweet and seemingly innocent kiss.

"Sean your break was for two minutes not…Minako!" Ken exclaimed as he watched his cousin pull herself abruptly away from Sean who had a blank wide eyed look to him.

"Hi Ken!"

* * *

Rei didn't want to go with Chun-Li, but the woman had been very insistent so now she found herself in an arena surrounded my miscreants and whores. Chun-Li had left to go gather information and assured her that she would be safe as long as she stayed put. Rei had every intention of staying put till she saw what looked like her father walking up some steps.

She was now weaving her way around people trying to reach the staircase that he had taken, but she was short and people were very rude. With each step forward it seemed like the girl was being pushed back another two and this process was grating on her nerves quickly. To make matters worse was the fact that every muscled male resembled that dreaded Ken Masters to her.

"Move." She chanted as she pushed against the crowd that was pushing her until she reached a…pink wall. She tried to side step to the right, but the wall moved with her. She put her hand against it and was shocked to feel heated flesh instead of cold concrete.

"It's rude to push little girl." The deep staccato voice said in thickly accented English. Rei lifted her head up and came face to stomach with a monster of a man. A really tall monster man.

"You should apologize." A equally deep, but distinctively feminine voice sang stepping out from behind the mass of a man. She wore red heels, cutoff jeans, and a white shirt that didn't do much to cover her ample bosom. Her most noticeable feature was her bright pink hair that matched the outfit of the monster that was beside her.

"I will not." Rei said haughtily turning around so she could leave, but she was stopped by a massive hand that grabbed the right half of her body. The hand gave her a squeeze of warning that made her body clinch in fear. Her eyes widened and the previous nights experiences came back and she screamed silencing all conversation in the vicinity.

"You didn't have to grab her so hard Hugo." The pink haired woman said annoyed with the attention they were getting. She tried to come closer, but the pitch of her scream increased with every step so she stopped.

"Did not!" He exclaimed moving his hand back to his side, but the girl continued to scream as she slowly slumped onto the floor holding herself.

Now people were gathered around watching in anticipation and horror, but none of them dared to go against the huge man.

"Shut her up Poison." Hugo yelled holding his ears. Poison huffed in annoyance, but she squatted down in front of Rei giving her audience a nice peep show.

"Now there's got to be….what the fuck!" Poison screamed holding the side of her cheek that was a glaring red. Hugo bent over and picked up a black flip flop from beside Poison.

"How dare you grab a lady like that you brute. Monsters like you deserve to be locked in cages so consider me your jailer."

**I loved writing this chapter so much. I am very excited about how this turned out and the next one will be even better! If you don't know much about street fighter I would suggest going to the street fighter wiki and typing in a characters name. I don't plan on introducing anyone, but the 3****rd**** strike cast, but if anyone has a favorite character outside of them message me and I will try and add them. After all I did add Rose (My second favorite after Ryu!) It will give you enough information to read this story easily. I want to dedicate this chapter to JPandS for her support and encouragement. **


	5. Roses

"Will you just wait a second?" Yun yelled after Ami, but the girl didn't even bother to look back. He had been yelling after her for ten minutes, but the girl had just changed her direction with each call. He didn't dare reach out and grab her since he had no idea of what she would do. The look of anger had never been so scary as it was on the petite girl. Her narrowed blue eyes would haunt him till the end of his days. He could only hope that she would hit him, but then he wouldn't be surprised if the girl screamed and the cops hauled him to jail. It was a very hard situation for Yun since he was an impatient man and this chase had gone on for to long in his opinion.

"Ami come on! You've got to have some pity on me." Yun hoped that his puppy dog face would work on her, but Ami didn't bat an eye. The girl picked up her pace and Yun slid out of her way so he wouldn't get trampled.

"No."

'The nerve of that impetuous, juvenile, egotistical, boorish…ooh he makes me so irate and…'Ami turned to the right to avoid a tree, but the tingling feeling was still there even though she tried her best not to think of it. There was no reason for her to feel tingled about anything that involved Yun, but yet she still felt something that her mind couldn't rationally explain for her. She brushed her hand over her lips and let it rest there as she thought. There had to be an explanation.

She was sure that this tingling would be interpreted by others as attraction or intrigue, but Ami would find her own reasoning for this tingling. Science had to have a better explanation then her hormones going on the fritz. Ami Mizuno would not believe that. Not after all the work she had done to put herself beyond petty emotions and…hormones.

She had not graduated early from high school with only her mother and a few teachers in attendance for nothing. The distance that Ami had achieved from her peers was unwelcomed at first, but eventually she became used to being alone. Immediately after, she had left Japan for Germany to begin her studies as a doctor. Her father had not managed to make it, but he had sent her a beautiful painting of the moon goddess Selene and her human lover Endymion. Ami had always had a soft spot for mythology and she had loved it, but the best part wasn't the beautiful deity looking longingly down at her shepherd. No, the best part was the words her father had written on the bottom: You are a grade above the rest Ami, never forget it.

Ami had never forgotten it and had placed those words in her heart to help her focus on her dream. No slipups. No friends. And definitely no boyfriend. These are the rules Ami had made for her life, but once she had what she wanted things weren't as clear cut as she once thought. In college she was one of the top students, but there were many that were not far behind. Ami had always been admired for her resolve, but she felt it slipping away. She had become an empty shell and had risen to the very top of her sophomore class.

Ami had little contact with her mother and none with her father. She shouldn't have been surprised since he was an 'artist' and his mind didn't work the same way that Ami and her mother's did. Going into her junior year Ami had been asked to join a special program that would allow her to practice her medical skills in a foreign country. She had accepted, which led to the predicament that she was in now.

"Ami! If you would stop for two seconds we could…" Yun tried again as they traveled away from the crowd and into the secluded trees of the park. He had let Ami walk blindly ahead since there were people around and he was not in the mood for police to haul him away. He however enjoyed the view of Ami from behind. Even though she was a petite girl, Yun had to admit that she had the cutest bottom that he had ever seen. Everything about her made him want to be close to her regardless of her wanting him around or not. Most often it was not, so he tried to think of another way to say sorry. He quickly brought his eyes back to the top of her hair since his wandering eyes had got him into this trouble in the first place. But she was so darn cute.

"Shut up!" Ami yelled shaking her head.

"If you just stop interrupting me we could sit and…"

"No!"

"You did it again Ami-chan!" Yun said in a sing song voice.

"Don't mock me."

"I would never." Yun gasped as he looked at Ami in shock.

"Ugh." Ami muttered, which was becoming a new habit for her. Muttering and having conversations with herself in her head.

"If you just stop we could…"

"What could we do Yun? Would you rather assault me again!" Ami raged spinning on her heel to face Yun. At the speed she was going the spin caused her to loose her balance and she found herself speeding toward the ground.

'The irony', Ami thought as she felt herself fall in slow motion.

"Assault you? I definitely would not call that assault." Yun said as he slid forward to catch Ami before she fell to the ground. The startled girl laid in his arms frozen stiff as he raised his free hand to her blue tresses. His other arm was holding the small of her back up while his kneeled right leg held up her legs. Ami could feel her heart beating loudly as she looked into his brown eyes that had softened. His whole expression softened as he looked at Ami as she licked her lips nervously.

"Assault?" Ami questioned stupidly as she became caught in Yun's dark gaze. For some reason she could not remember why she had been so angry.

"This is an assault Ami-chan." Yun whispered over her dry lips before he captured them once again.

Later Ami would deny she responded at all…

* * *

Poison would have never believed that Hugo could be bested by a teenaged girl, but it had happened right before her eyes. And unfortunately in front of other fighters as well. If she didn't fear Hugo's wrath she would have stepped in and shown the girl a thing or two. The worst part was the fact that Hugo was out after one measly hit. Now it would be harder to find him a partner with so much negative publicity going on. Her work was never done.

She was thankful that the girl had finally stopped moving and was now helping the raven haired girl off of the floor. Hugo was not looking good at all and she wanted to get him out of here, but his large ebony eyes were determined. She knew that if she interfered she would be his enemy as well, so she instead decided to watch him wobble about as she pondered what kind of damage control she could provide after the fight was over. There weren't many fighters watching so she could always manipulate the conversation.

The colossal of a man was currently staggering about trying to figure out which figure was actually the green eyed girl. There were currently five identical kimono clad girls with russet hair looking at their hands with astonishment and a bit of apprehension. Hugo blinked rapidly, but the number of girls didn't decrease, but 'she' didn't move forward either. He would have never toyed with her if he knew she was packing such a punch.

_Rei had stopped screaming once the tall Japanese girl had walked up and had declared to everyone that she would protect her. Some of the crowd had laughed while others looked worried as they took notice of Hugo's large form, but Rei was neither worried nor amused. She felt completely safe under the girls hawk eyed gaze and it didn't feel strange at all. For some reason she knew that this girl would willingly put her life on the line without a moments hesitation for her. Rei had never felt safer._

"_Who are you calling a brute…you…you…violent tomboy!" Poison screamed waving the flip flop around in anger. The brunette opened her mouth to speak, but then shut it. Her cheeks had a red tinge to them. Rei had a feeling that the girl was embarrassed, but she had no idea why. If Rei were in her position she would have done a lot more than throw a flip flop._

'_I told Rose I would stay put, but I couldn't stand by. If Rose was here she would give me a lecture on my impulsive nature. I really need to work on that.' Makoto thought as she looked around the crowd for the purple haired woman. She sighed in relief when she didn't spot any tall purple haired women, but this only seemed to annoy Poison who didn't like being ignored when she was going on a tirade._

"_Even though you're a girl, Hugo will not take light of you actions." Poison yelled glaring menacingly at Makoto as she rose to her feet besides Hugo. Poison was very statuesque and her slow rise caught the attention of many men in the crowd. Rei's traditional beauty and Makoto's exotic features were nothing compared to Poison's toned body and sharp angels. Poison knew this and put her hand on hip and made sure she jutted out her bosoms as they were barely contained by her off the shoulder t-shirt._

"_What?" Hugo asked feeling a bit put out at being brought into the conversation. He did not want to fight the girl or any woman for that matter. His pride would only allow him to fight a female if he felt threatened and he was not getting an ominous feeling from the brunette. He had seen many little girls that kicked ass, but the aura they had was obvious and their confidence as a fighter was known. This girl was lacking in both areas. The thought of her trying to fight him in that ridiculously tight kimono made him laugh._

_Makoto's eyes narrowed at the deep rumbling laughter that came from Hugo. He had no right to laugh at her when he didn't even know what she was capable of. Makoto knew that she didn't look like a frail girl, but her youth and gender were often a hindrance when she wanted to be taken seriously. She had often envied Haruka for her ability to abandon her femininity so that her academy would be taken seriously. Makoto wished she had Haruka's mindset, but in the end Makoto did care about her appearance a little. She would never admit it out loud, but Mako wanted a family and the idea of being a mom was appealing to her._

_Poison's eyes narrowed as she lifted her head to glare at Hugo. Rei could have sworn that the huge man drew back in fear._

"_What! What do you mean what? We have an audience and you will give them a show." With every what Poison would pause to strike a pose that would leave many of the men drooling. Rei had seen many girls like Poison in her life as far as the body went, but they lacked the confidence that she possessed. This is the same confidence that Rei lacked._

"_I don't fight little girls."_

"_That is not a little girl! Look at her! She is making me…you look bad!"_

"_Why don't you fight her Poison?"_

"_Because I am your manager and I am a lady."_

"_Lady? You?" Hugo chuckled to himself, but everyone had heard him._

"_Yes I am a lady! What do I look like? A tacky little tomboy?" Poison took the time to run her body over her curves._

"_Tomboy. One of those words are right."_

_At this point Poison's face matched her hair and her mouth was gasping like a fish out of water. Makoto was trying to remember what tomboy meant and Rei was glaring angrily at the brunette for not making a move. The brunette obviously had the disadvantage so her best option would be a sneak attack. Even though she was in a sticky situation her temper was on the rise._

"_If you don't fight that girl right now Hugo I will quit and I mean it!" Poison shouted jabbing her finger into Hugo's wide chest with menace._

"_I just…" Makoto started to say, but Poison looked back at her with eyes full of venom._

"_Shut up! I'll get to you next." That was the final straw for Makoto._

_At that second Makoto launched her first attack. Her kimono started to rip on the side due to her rapid motion, the rip continued up to her thigh so she could run at full force. She dashed forward and leapt into the air over Rei's head and landed a spin kick to Hugo's face. Makoto back flipped away from Hugo to see his reaction, but Hugo had slumped forward. Makoto took small steps backwards, but Hugo's beefy arm shot out. Poison slid backwards out of the way so she was behind Rei and then she picked up the girl and pulled her away from the fight and into the crowd. Rei did not struggle and her violet eyes did not leave Makoto's form as she was grabbed by her right foot and slung down onto the floor. Some of the crowd made noises of disapproval at the action, but no one jumped in to help. Rei felt the urge to defend Mako, but Poison's grip was strong despite how she looked._

_Makoto gasped out as her body hit the floor, but she didn't scream to Hugo's surprise. She could see stars, but she shook her head and took in a deep breath and made her next move. While Hugo gawked, Makoto swept his legs with her free one. Makoto was sure that her lavender colored underwear was showing, but recklessness was the only way she could make it through the fight. Hugo was not able to catch his footing so he fell dragging Makoto backwards into his lap. As Makoto was dragged up Hugo's body her tight kimono gradually split up her body till her toned stomach was on display for everyone to see much to her embarrassment._

"_Ecchi!" She screamed head butting Hugo with amazing force that caused him to let her go more from surprise then pain. She rolled over until she was a few feet away from him and rose to her feet. Makoto could feel her blood pulsing in her ear and she stumbled forward hesitantly. She had hit the ground hard and she was still a bit shaky. He was big after all and concrete was by no means comfy._

_Hugo was surprised at the girls speed since she was so tall, but he wouldn't slip up again. She was stronger than some of the male fighters he had faced, but her defenses were weak. He didn't see much of a trend in her fighting style and he assumed that this was because she was scared or she hadn't been fighting long. She looked as if she was in a trance, which made it hard for him to be of the offense. Her deep green eyes seemed impossibly huge and he could not see the pupil. For some reason he could not look away from those eyes._

_Makoto could smell the roses in the air, but it could not be from in the arena. She usually only smelt them when she was outside. The smell was intoxicating and she felt drunk with sensation. In her head she could imagine a field of roses and above her a beautiful sky with many moons. The hairs on her arms were sticking upward due to static in the air. There was a slight wind, but the dew in the hair caused it to stick to her skin. Makoto knew this place could not be real, because earth had one moon, but it still felt so real. The sky was teal and there were so many stars in the sky, but suddenly the sky became cloudy and thunder sounded in the distance. She knew the lightning was coming since she could smell it in the air._

_Makoto had never been afraid of lightning storms so she held her ground now. Her simple white toga slapped against her thighs as the rain and wind picked up. As the lightning struck all around her she could feel her hands burning. As a child she had accidentally stuck her hand in a fire and still had a small burn mark from it, but she would never forget that pain. The pain she was experiencing now was similar to the burn but extremely amplified. Makoto wanted to cry out, but she had little control over her body. She could only stand with her hands stretching toward the sky as they continued to burn. The scent of flowers was overbearing and her hands felt as if they were melting off._

'_Call me' A voice screamed out in her mind, but Makoto had no idea what to call. Her world was darkening and she felt as if she could pass out any moment due to the pain._

'_I can't help if you fight me.' The same voice called into her mind in a scolding tone, but Makoto did not know how to respond. Her body was in pain and she needed a release._

"_What do I do? Tell me." Makoto cried feeling tears fall down her face. Even though the pain was destroying her, the curiosity she was feeling was bothering her more._

'_Jupiter', the voice whispered and the lightning stopped and the smell of flowers dispersed. Just the smell was enough to alleviate the pain and she was once again able to focus on her surroundings. The lightning was striking all around her destroying the pale orange rock. Even though the lightning could strike her any moment Makoto did not feel any fear. She wanted the lightning to strike her and it did. The pain was going away and there was only one thing left to do._

"_Supreme Thunder Dragon!"_

Makoto looked down at her hands for the fifth time in the last two minutes, but there were no sparks of electricity so if she had not distinctively remembered what happened it could have been a dream. There was so much going on around her, but she did not take time to relish in her victory. Mako moved toward the raven haired girl who eyed her hands with wonder.

"That was so cool!" Someone in the crowd yelled in Mako's face. Makoto took this moment to start dragging Rei behind her as she shoved people aside. No one gave them any trouble till they got closer to the entrance. Mako had one arm on Rei's wrist and the other now free from the crowd was clutching her ruined kimono that had split right underneath her left breast. They made it to the front door before they were intercepted by a tall man who didn't look like he wouldn't be moving any time soon. Makoto looked up at him with eyes full of fury. She was tiered, but she believed she could call on the dragon again if she needed to.

"Move." She said not letting the mans chiseled features effect her. His mouth had a natural frown to it that reminded her of Rose, but maybe that was all Europeans. His pale eyes were focused on her and they were very intense. He was very handsome and his cream three piece suit only emphasized his amazing physic. His body was definitly drool worthy, but Mako had concequed that bad habit years ago. Maybe.

"Now there is no reason to get angry I was just seeing if I could interest you in competing in this years street fighter tournament. A girl with your talents could definitely make if far in this completion." When he said talents his eyes strayed down toward Mako's ripped kimono, which caused the girl to blush crimison.

"Not interested." Makoto said letting go of Rei's hand to cross her arms underneath her chest. This shifted his attention to the split in her dress. Her eyes had narrowed into dark emerald slits her pale pink lips were turned downward in a scowl. She liked him better when he was looking her in the eyes.

"Let's try again. My name is Urien and I am interested in sponsoring you in this tournament. All you have to do is participate. Many fighters would kill for a chance to enter into a tournament of this caliber. You should count yourself lucky Miss…"

Instead of answering Makoto moves to the left, but Urien was faster and appeared directly in front of her. Unable to stop hew forward momentum Rei bumped into Mako's back which caused her to bump into Uriens chest. Urien grabbed her by her shoulders and pushed the mortified girl forward so she was not lying flush against his body, but not before giving her a bright smile. The smile looked very unatural on his chisseled feature. She assumed that his interntions were to make her feel at ease in his presense, but it looked as if he was a big cat that had found his next meal. Mako supposed that she was the mouse.

"Makoto and no." Urien smirked and ran a hand through his pale blond hair. His hands were large and covered his entire face and when he removed it he had an arrogant smirk on his face as he took two steps forward so he was directly in front of Makoto, but this time not against her.

"Reconsider, it would be wise." Urien said bending down so he could whisper into Makoto's ear. Makoto could hear the threat in his tone and she didn't like it, but she could also feel the danger that the man was emitting in waves. There was also another emotion that she could feel, but it was indescribable. The feeling was only intesenified when she looke din his eyes.

"Makoto lets get out." Rei said looking around for Chun-Li. As a Shinto priestess Rei had been blessed with the ability to sense sprit energy whether it was bad or good. When Rei entered the arena she had a bad feeling but she didn't dare voice any of her opinions to Chun-Li. Her feelings often got her laughed at or ignored and she could not afford to be insolated in America, but for some reason she didn't mind being paranoid with Makoto. Urien was bad and the way that he looked at Makoto was even worse.

"You can go for now, but the offer will continue to be on the table Makoto." The way he said her name sent shivers down both of the girls spines. The man was no good for Makoto and if Rei didn't watch out for her she might not see the threat when it comes.

Makoto decided not to acknowledge him and keep walking. Urien was an extremely attractive man, but Makoto knew better than to tangle with him. While training with Rose she had learned to gauge her opponents power by their stance. Rose was trying to get her to access peoples aura to see what kind of power she would be up against, but Makoto was not fairing well with that method. From Urien's easy stance she could tell he was a power house and this was not just from judging his size. For some reason she felt as if he would make Hugo look like a walk in the park. Makoto also managed to get shocked several times from just speaking to the man. The sensation was new, but surprisingly welcome as if he was a kindred spirit.

Rei was not as impressed with Urien and glanced back at him warily. He did not glance her way and only focused on Makoto's retreating form. The look in his pale blue eyes showed the hunger of a predator and that was a look Rei knew to well. Rei knew they were lucky to be leaving this arena at all with the claim that Urien was staking on Makoto. Rei broke out into a run to keep up with Makoto's speed walk till they reached a crowded main street.

"You fight beautifully."

They had managed to make their way to the main street where both girls stopped. It was as if they both realized they had done exactly what they weren't supposed to do and people were probably looking for them.

"Thanks, but I'm not really that great of a fighter." Makoto sheepishly rubbed her arm and looked down at the ground. No one had really complimented her fighting. If anything thing she was critiqued as being too rough and in need of finesse.

"No you're good. I am Rei."

"Makoto, but you can call me Mako if you want." Makoto smiled and Rei's face mirrored hers. Makoto felt giddy for some reason as if she found a piece of herself.

"Its good to meet you Mako."

"Same to you." Rei felt silly standing on a crowded street smiling at a girl she had just met. She had lost sight of her father and that should have been her main priority, but right now she just wanted to hang out with Makoto and talk.

"This is strange."

"Yes." Rei agreed and Makoto laughed. Rei had remembered feeling this way when she met Minako, but seeing Makoto fight had made her feel a bigger sense of connection.

"We should find a phone."

"That won't be necessary." Rose said crossing her arms and fixing her face into a deeply menacing scowl as she looked at Makoto. Rei took notice of Makoto's sheepish expression and turned so she was facing Rose. Rei was deeply shocked at the darkness she sensed from Rose. The darkness wasn't threatening, but it was definitely there.

"Sorry Rose, she needed my help."

"I know Makoto you were just trying to help Rei."

"Yeah! Wait…What?" Rose's frown turned into a slight smile at the confused look on both of the girls faces.

"I talked to Chun-Li and I let her know I will be taking care of you from this moment on." Rose said to both girls. Rei looked at her with defiance in her eyes and Makoto squeezed her hand. Rose was the last person anyone would want to tangle with..

"Rei's a fighter?" Makoto asked in confusion as she cut her eyes at Rei. The girl did not have the build of a fighter nor did she seem to even know any basic defense.

"No, but Rei has other attributes that make her a force to be reckoned with."

"You have the power too." Rei stated and Rose nodded her head. The girl was definitely gifted, but there was much that Rose could do to make her even more adept in her spiritual powers.

"Rei!" Makoto and Rei turned around to see a crazed blonde running toward them. Rose looked at the girl with cryptic eyes that Makoto couldn't read.

"Rei I am so happy to see you! Ken has been such a bad cousin. Maybe having you around will make him less of a crabby boy." Minako continued to yell even though she was still a couple of feet away. Behind her Rei could see Ken who had a smirk on his face, which caused Rei to frown. Rei also noticed a darker skinned man trailing behind Ken. Maybe her eyes were deceiving her, but she swore she could see two black eyes.

"And then there was one."

YA! I am not promising any updates since I always fail misirably at meeting a deadline, but I hope to have the next chapter up soon. Thanks to my editor her encouragment drives me. Also for anyone who is unfamilar with Street Fighter it was first known as Final Fight. There was no Ken and Ryu, but there were simular characters. One of them is Poison, which at the time was a shemale since America didn't condone hitting ladies in the 90's. That's where the humor comes from if anyone cares... please review!


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